The Chaos Path
by Calai'di
Summary: A series of drabbles mostly centered around Kiryu. Ships will be involved. Ratings will vary. Possible spoilers. DRABBLE 6: The night before their final stand, Kiryu tracked Misty down to request a dance.
1. Demak

AN: This is probably the first of a bunch of drabbles that are likely to be way too short to warrant their own "story". They're pretty much all going to be Kiryu-ships or Kiryu-centric. Kiryu is my fandom bicycle, so...

Also, he doesn't get enough love. And neither do quite a few of the people I ship him with.

Like this first one!

**Disclaimers:** I don't own Yugioh 5D's.  
**Rating:** T  
**Pairings/characters:** Kiryu & Demak  
**Warnings:** a mention of blood?  
**Summary:** Kiryu's introduction to the Dark Signers. That's about it.

* * *

**A Fine Day to Exit**

Demak found him sooner than he'd expected. Rudger had suggested looking out here, but he hadn't thought he would find anything. But there he was. Wandering alone, so close to the control tower of his god. Demak wondered how he'd made it so far on his own--Security's prison facility wasn't anywhere near here, and he looked like he was about to pass out any minute--but it didn't matter in the long run. He'd made Demak's job easier by coming so far on his own.

"Kiryu Kyosuke."

Kiryu froze and stared at him with wild eyes. Eyes like a hungry wild dog. Or even a domestic dog that had been kicked a few too many times. But they were white, like any normal person, not the near-black reddish-brown of the dead.

"Who are you?" Kiryu demanded. "How do you know my name? Are you Security?"

Demak stopped a short distance away and held up his hands to show he meant no harm. Now that he was closer, he could see that Kiryu was covered in blood under the black cloak he was wearing. Probably not his own. It wasn't too surprising; Demak doubted Security would have just let Kiryu walk out.

"My name is Demak. I'm a friend."

"I don't have any friends."

Demak slowly lowered his hands, watching him closely. "I'm not an enemy. I'm like you, chosen by the Gods. Perhaps not a friend, but a team-mate."

Kiryu's expression opened up with that word, full of hurt and anger and fear and muted hope. He did take a step back away from Demak, but overall he looked more open to hearing more.

"A...team-mate...?" Then his expression closed off again and he sneered, clutching at his right arm where his mark probably was. "Prove it."

Demak shrugged and pushed the top of his glove down, revealing his own mark. Kiryu stared at it and gripped his own arm even tighter, enough to look painful. He took a couple steps forward before he seemed to realize what he was doing and stopped again.

Demak wondered if Rudger knew their newest recruit was this anxious.

"I don't...I don't need a team," Kiryu whispered. But he didn't look like he really believed it. His eyes hadn't left Demak's mark, and if there was look Demak knew well, it was longing, and he was sure that was what he was seeing.

"I've heard Rudger-sama say the same thing occasionally. He never means it." Demak walked over to his and held a hand out. Kiryu stared at it like he was holding deadly snake.

"I mean it."

Demak smiled and shook his head. "If you say so."

Kiryu glared right back at him and slapped his hand away. Then he turned around and started shuffling away, moving with as much purpose as he could in his weakened state.

"Kiryu-san."

Kiryu tensed and stopped but he didn't look around. It was promising enough just to have him stop.

"Do you have anywhere to stay?" Demak asked, nodding to himself when Kiryu just seemed to shrink more in on himself. "As long as you're one of us, you'll have a room. You can claim it when you're ready. I'll inform Rudger-sama of how you're doing."

Demak turned and started the walk back to Old Momentum.

He'd hardly taken ten steps before something grabbed his cloak. He held out a hand and wasn't entirely surprised when Kiryu took it and _clung_.

"It feels like it's going to rain," Kiryu muttered, gaze firmly on the ground. "I don't want to get caught out in it."

Demak squeezed his hand and started leading him back to Old Momentum, smiling faintly. "I understand."


	2. Yuusei

**Rating:** T  
**Pairings/characters:** Kiryu/Yuusei  
**Warnings:** slash? idk why else you're here...  
**Summary:** Kiryu's returns from his "trip" and runs into Yuusei first.

Written for Artemis_Ignitan

* * *

**Sunset**

Yuusei found himself on this bridge more and more often recently. He knew Jack and Crow were worried about him; they thought he didn't notice, but he saw the glances they gave his back and each other whenever he pulled on his helmet to ride out. So far, neither of them had followed him here, but it was only a matter of time.

Tonight was an especially nice night to be here. Clouds lingered along the horizon and through the sky. The setting sun painted them orange, pink, and purplish-red. This point on the bridge over looked the ocean, which reflected those colors right back at the sky. The only sounds were a few engines that came and went behind him, never staying long enough to be a bother.

A breeze whispered past him, tickling his face with his bangs. A sudden chill danced through his back and through his shoulders and arms. He shivered a little. The clouds on the horizon looked like there would be rain tonight.

"You shouldn't be out here if you're shivering, Yuusei. You'll catch cold."

Yuusei tensed in spite of himself. He knew that voice.

The last time he'd heard that voice it had been screaming at him.

"Kiryu," he murmured. He didn't look back. He didn't want to know how Kiryu was looking at him.

"I come back from Peru, visit _you_ first, and you won't even look at me? Thanks, Yuusei."

Yuusei tried not to flinch, he really did. But he did glance over his shoulder.

And it _was_ Kiryu. He wore the same clothes he'd been wearing when he woke up those months ago, his old maroon shirt and dark jeans. The yellow marker on his cheek stood in stark contrast to Yuusei's memories.

And he had a helmet under his arm. A D-Wheel stood parked on the pavement behind him, painted deep blue and orange...

...like the one he'd had as a Dark Signer.

"I'm sorry, Kiryu," he finally said, looking away again. "I couldn't save you after all. I'm sorry I failed you."

"_Failed_ me? Yuusei..."

Footsteps, and then Kiryu's hands were on his shoulders. He tensed even more. Was Kiryu going to try to push him off the bridge? He couldn't blame him...

"Yuusei, I'm the one who should be apologizing, not you. You were trying to help me and I didn't realize that until recently. You were always trying to help me. Even when _I_ was trying to save _you_..."

"Kiryu..." Yuusei blinked back at his old friend. He'd told him what had really happened that night, but Kiryu wouldn't believe him. Did he really just need time to see the truth...?

Kiryu's arms slipped down around his waist. Yuusei found himself leaning back against him, enjoying the warmth that came with it. And the feeling of maybe having his friend back.

"I'm sorry, Yuusei," Kiryu murmured. Yusei felt something hot roll down his neck, then another drop and another. Kiryu's arms shook a little around him. "I'm so sorry I didn't trust you. You can't forgive me. I don't deserve it."

Yuusei shook his head, squeezing one of Kiryu's hands. "Of course I can forgive you. You're my friend. I couldn't abandon a friend like that."

Kiryu just started shaking more at that. Yuusei squeezed his hand again and look back out across the ocean. Kiryu didn't cry unless he really needed it, and he hated when anyone acknowledged that that was what he was doing. He'd said it made him feel too weak. Yuusei could let him get this out in peace.

"Thank you, Yuusei," Kiryu finally murmured. Most of the sky was either gray or the same color as his shirt by then. Yuusei's breath caught as a pair of lips ghosted over his neck, over the place Kiryu's tears had been falling before. It wasn't unpleasant, though, and it wasn't unwelcome. Just surprising.

"Let's watch this until the stars come out," Yuusei said. "Then we'll go home, Kyosuke."

Kiryu's only response was to lean around and press a light kiss to the corner of his lips. Yuusei smiled and relaxed against his chest. His family was complete at last.


	3. Bommer

Rating: T  
Pairings/characters: Kiryu & Bommer  
Warnings: nada  
Summary: Kiryu pays Bommer a visit while waiting for his final duel.

* * *

**Underworld**

"So you're Demak's new pet."

Bommer didn't look up immediately. He's been sitting here for hours, alone in this cell, and no one had bothered to acknowledge he was here, so he was surprised to have company. But he wasn't about to show it. Not until he had a better idea of what was going on. Maybe especially once he knew what was going on.

Although he really didn't like being called a "pet."

"Whatever. Misty has a new pet too. And Rudger has his little spiders..."

"Who are you?" Bommer asked. The figure in the shadows laughed, a baying laughter that would send shivers up anyone else's spine. The figure stepped out of the shadows and leaned on his arms against the bars of the cell, leering at him with a broken grin.

"Kiryu Kyosuke, favored servant of the Giant." Kiryu cocked his head, looking Bommer over with wild gold eyes. "And I know who you are. We were watching the Fortune Cup. You little stunt was impressive. Too bad it didn't work."

Bommer studied him silently, ignoring the weak taunt. Kiryu looked to be around his age and absolutely crazy, although there was something about him that was charismatic. He moved like a person who knew what he was about and his place in life and was happy with it.

He was certainly more sure of himself than Rudger.

"Why are you here?"

Kiryu blinked in surprise and shrugged, although he started looking a little wary. "I wanted to see what you were like."

"No." Bommer shook his head and looked Kiryu over again. "Why are you down here, with them? Servant of the Giant, you said. Why?"

Kiryu's expression fell immediately. The crazy was still there, perhaps more so than before, but so was someone intelligent and righteously angry. One of his hands grabbed one of the bars, knuckles turning white with how hard he gripped it.

"Why else?" Kiryu muttered. "Revenge. That's why we're all here. That's why Demak brought you here, isn't it?"

Bommer nodded, staying silent for now. If asked, he'd explain, but he figured Kiryu already knew why. He'd mentioned watching the Fortune Cup, after all.

Kiryu shifted to look over at the door, scowling at it. "'Course he couldn't've just left the keys lying around," he muttered, almost too quiet for Bommer to hear. Then he looked back at Bommer, gold eyes glinting starkly out of his shadowed face. "I'd love to give you a tour, but Rudger's an ass. You haven't been too bored just sitting here, have you?"

Bommer shook his head. He'd been stewing too much to be bored. Thinking about his little brother and sister...and all the people of his village...and how Rex Godwin had to be _stopped_. His hands clenched into tight fists as he thought of that man and his Yliaster and the destruction they'd wrought. Even that utopia called Neo Domino thrived at the cost of hundreds of lives here in Satellite.

"Sometimes it's better not to think about it," Kiryu said, quiet and almost sympathetic. Bommer looked up again; he'd forgotten the other man was there. Or maybe he'd thought Kiryu would have gotten bored with watching him just sit there and wandered off again.

But Kiryu was watching him like a hawk, looking almost...sorry for him. He wondered how much Kiryu really knew about his past. He wouldn't be so sympathetic if he only knew what had been said at the Fortune Cup.

Bommer stood and walked over to the bars. Kiryu didn't move except to stare up at him. It was odd looking down so much to look Kiryu in the eyes; he didn't really feel that much taller than Kiryu, even with Kiryu slouching over like he was.

"What is 'it' for you?" Bommer asked, curious about how this man worked. And after how friendly Kiryu had been, he was surprised to see Kiryu stand up straight and cross his arms in front of his chest, completely closing himself off.

"I didn't come down here to talk about my problems," Kiryu sneered, all his previous amiability gone.

Bommer mirrored his stance and smirked inwardly at the annoyed look that formed on Kiryu's face.

"Do you ever talk about your problems, Kyosuke?"

He couldn't help a faint smirk from pulling at his lips at Kiryu's reaction to that-like he'd taken a sip of sour milk and was deciding whether it really was sour or just his imagination.

"It's none of your business," Kiryu said finally. He took a step back, and another, and turned to leave. Reluctantly. He wasn't looking at Bommer anymore, but he wasn't looking in a completely different direction either.

And he hadn't corrected Bommer on using his first name. Bommer always found it interesting when someone in this country did that.

"Leaving already?"

Kiryu sneered back at him. "I got what I wanted. I need to go prepare for a duel." He took a few steps, paused, and ducked his head, as if that would muffle what he was saying. "See you later."

Bommer watched until Kiryu disappeared into the shadows of the hallway. Then he walked back to the stone bench and sat down again, feeling a bit more content than he had before. That had been an interesting way to break up the monotony of sitting in this cell for hours.

"'See you later," was it..."


	4. Demak take 2

**Rating:** adorably PG  
**Pairings/characters:** Kiryu, Demak, & Rudger  
**Summary:** Demak decides to celebrate Kiryu's birthday. Because he's nice like that.

* * *

**Birthday**

Kiryu couldn't stop staring. He had no idea what to make of this. For one, he was sure he hadn't seen so much food in one place in his entire life (although since he couldn't remember earlier than age four, maybe he had). And Demak looked so self-satisfied...and there wasn't really a reason for all this food, was there? Or the cake?

"What is all this?" he finally asked.

Demak gave him a brief look. He wasn't sure why. Demak was smart enough to know what he meant.

"We thought we should do something for your birthday," Demak said.

Across the room, Rudger cleared his throat and said, "_You_ thought we should do something."

Kiryu took a moment to stare at both of them and then back at all the food. This was all for _him_?

...He couldn't ask _why_. He didn't need them to know how insecure he still felt, whether they already knew or not. But even with his old team, they hardly did more than share a rare bottle of sake and exchange very sparse presents for each other's birthdays. He couldn't even remember what they'd done for his birthday last year.

"How'd you know today's my birthday?" There, that was a safe question.

Rudger snorted and rolled his eyes. "What does that matter?"

"I dug up some old records," Demak said with a shrug.

Kiryu stared at him. "Do you still have them?"

Demak nodded slowly. "I can show you where they are later." He briefly looked back at the food before asking, "If you'd like to pretend this isn't for your birthday, that's fine, Kiryu-san. I enjoyed cooking either way."

Kiryu didn't answer right away. He didn't really _mind_ that Demak had set up something so elaborate just for him-it was flattering, actually. It was like having friends again, even though he'd promised himself he wouldn't let anyone be his friend until he destroyed the one who had shattered his trust. Could he let himself accept this as an act of friendship? It couldn't be anything else, but he'd never though he'd find any sort of friendship _here_.

"It's been a long time since I celebrated my birthday like this," Kiryu murmured after a moment. "I can't even remember it."

"Are you going to sit down so we can eat or not?" Rudger snapped. Kiryu sneered back at him and strode over to his seat.

"It's _my_ birthday. I can decide when I want to eat."

"Sit down," Rudger growled.

Kiryu stayed standing for another minute or so before he finally flopped into his seat, glaring at their leader. He hardly looked up as Demak sat down across from him. It wasn't because of Rudger, he was just really hungry, damn it.

"I tried not to make anything it seemed like you hated," Demak said after a moment. Kiryu glanced up, looking over the spread. Other than natto, there wasn't much he _wouldn't_ eat...

"It's fine." He kept his smile to himself as he started piling food onto his plate. This really was...really nice of him to have done.

"...Thank you, Demak."


	5. Crow

Rating: T  
Pairings/characters: Kiryu/Crow  
Summary: Crow can see the signs. He just doesn't want to.

Written for Immicolia.

* * *

**Mayhem**

He could have heard that laugh from a mile off. _Anyone_ could have heard it. It wasn't like Kiryu ever tried to hide it or himself; if anything, he'd been growing louder and more wild as the months passed. But it sure would have been nice if Kiryu could give him a break once in a while. That laugh hadn't meant anything good yet, and he doubted it would this time.

It didn't take long to find him. He was going to have to mention this to Yuusei later; forget the other gangs, Kiryu was going to attract Security's attention if he kept this up any longer, and an empty lot was the worst place to hide from them.

Crow jumped the fence as Kiryu started giggling to himself again. across the lot, something exploded. Crow cursed under his breath and hastened his steps.

"Kiryu! What the hell are you doing out here?"

Kiryu just grinned at him. Like he'd expected to see Crow out here. Like he wasn't doing anything wrong. Like he wasn't _acting_ wrong.

And in the next moment, he wasn't. There wasn't any real perceptible change, but suddenly he was back to his only slightly crazy self. Crow swallowed heavily as Kiryu crossed the last bit of distance between them and ruffled his hair like he had a million times before. He didn't want to believe Kiryu was losing it, but what else could it be...?

"I was just practicing," Kiryu said with a shrug. "It's too soon to relax. The other gangs might try to take back their territory. it'd be pathetic if we let them 'cause we're out of practice."

Crow wanted to call him on it-that explosion wasn't caused by any Duel Monsters card-but then Kiryu's arms were around him, holding him close, and he could hardly breathe much less accuse him of anything. He still crossed his arms between them rather than hug him back. The laugh was still fresh in his mind.

"You worry too much," he muttered after a moment. "No on'll oppose us anymore. They're all scared shitless of us."

_They're scared shitless of_ you...because he'd heard stories about some of the gang in zone M. How at least one of them could hardly walk now. At first, he'd been able to convince himself it was just an accident.

Kryu chuckled and threaded his fingers through Crow's hair again, fixing the mess he'd made. "Maybe you're right. Still can't hurt to practice."

"Yeah, and it can't hurt to practice inside." But he knew Kiryu would never listen to that. He hadn't even liked dueling inside before he started acting funny.

And like he thought, Kiryu just chuckled again and grabbed his chin to kiss him. Because that would always get Crow to back down, and he hated it. But at least for a bit, he could pretend that Kiryu's kisses weren't any rougher than they used to be and the grip on his arm wasn't going to end up bruising later-that nothing had changed.

Then something else exploded and they both jumped, sending their teeth crashing into each other and Kiryu's nails into Crow's skin enough to bleed. Kiryu glanced back and shrugged in apology. Crow punched him in the arm, slipped out of his grip, and left.

Whatever Kiryu was messing around with, he wasn't going to be a part of it._  
_


	6. Misty

**Pairing:** Kiryu/Misty

**Rating:** T

**Summary:**_ The night before their final stand, Kiryu tracked Misty down to request a dance._

* * *

**Last Waltz**

The night before their final stand, Kiryu tracked Misty down to request a dance. It was cheesy and embarrassing, but there was such a large part of him that was actually worried one of them might not make it that he was determined to give her something she wanted before that happened.

Thank the gods Carly was already asleep, or it might have been impossible to pry Misty away from her side. She was reluctant enough as it was. And Carly probably would have teased him relentlessly, which he didn't really feel like listening to right now.

But it the end, Carly remained asleep, and Misty took his hand and allowed him to guide her out of the room.

Misty hesitated ever so slightly as they entered the room Kiryu had prepared for this, but then the moment was over and she was at his side again, shaking her head with a faint smile on her lips.

"When did you have the time to do this?" she asked quietly, looking around.

It wasn't much-just a bit of artfully draped fabric here and there and some cracked glass lights hanging among it all, just enough to change the atmosphere of the room-but it _had_ taken a bit of time to find the fabric and the lights and make sure they were nice enough and then fix the wiring in this room so the lights would actually work. He had actually been working on this project for a few weeks now, ever since Rudger had been making noise like they would _finally _begin moving soon. It might have been finished sooner, but he could only sneak out so often before Rudger started getting suspicious.

He shrugged casually, trying not to show how proud he was that she'd noticed and appreciated the effort, and walked over to the music player he'd managed to salvage. "I found time here and there." He kicked a button with his toe and quiet music began working it's way through the room. It had been a bit of a challenge to find _that _too, but he'd done his best so the illusion could be complete.

He walked back over and held out a hand, unable to keep a grin off his face even as he _tried _to stay serious, because wasn't that what old fashioned gentlemen did when they asked a lady to dance? "May I have this dance?"

Misty covered her mouth with her hand to hide a laugh and took his hand with the other one-lightly, so it didn't seem like she was _too _excited about this. "Well, I suppose we can't let your hard work go to waste, can we?"

It was obvious as soon as they began moving that Kiryu had no idea what he was doing. He tripped over his feet before they'd been moving for even half a minute, and he nearly stepped on Misty's feet more than once. He'd always had a good sense of rhythm, so at least he was able to step in time with the music, but that was about all he had going for him.

They didn't exactly have things like ballroom dancing classes growing up in Satellite, certainly not in the parts _he'd _grown up in.

But Misty only laughed and swiftly took over the role of leader herself, carefully guiding him through the steps and movements that took them around the room. It wasn't long before Kiryu could confidently look at _her _rather than at his feet, and it seemed she had decided the same, because when he did look up, her eyes were closed.

"What you thinking about?" he asked after a moment.

Misty smiled and looked up at him slowly, her blue eyes almost glowing in the low light. It was a surprisingly content expression, and Kiryu found himself smiling a bit in return.

"After tomorrow, we'll finally be able to rest in peace," she said quietly.

Kiryu looked away, swallowing his unease and fury at the thought of tomorrow. Right now, there was only Misty and their dance.

"_Live_ in peace, you mean," he said, and he couldn't quite keep the fury out of his voice after all. "I didn't only want revenge. I don't want to die. I'm not _going _to die. I mean, any more than I already did."

Misty sighed and her smile turned a bit bitter too. "You might be able to live peacefully," she murmured, though she sounded doubtful. "I wouldn't be able to. My wish isn't something that could be granted so easily."

"Maybe you should get a new wish," Kiryu muttered.

Misty's smile turned sad and she shook her head while her hand suddenly gripped his a bit too tightly. "I already have one. It won't be granted either."

Kiryu fell quiet for a minute. They had almost revolved halfway around the room before he said quietly, "I think you could be happy if you lived."

Misty didn't answer until they had reached the other side of the room again, and when she didn't, she was looking at something over his shoulder that he couldn't see. "Maybe I could, if I wasn't alone. I've grown tired of that."

Kiryu laughed and spun her around. "What do you think friends are for?"

The rest of the dance was spent in silence, a comfortable silence, as it should have been. Kiryu was busy trying not to think to hard about the events of the next day, or to turn those thoughts to how it would feel when Yuusei finally got what he deserved. He would rather have pleasant thoughts tonight, and he would especially rather just enjoy this simple action of dancing with Misty when he'd had so very little to be happy about for such a long time. And it seemed Misty had the same idea, if her closed eyes and faint smile were any indication.

Tomorrow he would lead Yuusei in a completely different dance as an enemy. Tonight he could allow himself to be lead in a more peaceful one by a friend.


End file.
